According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices in Chicago, Illinois are 1,415.17% higher in 2025 versus 1920 (a $134,440,733,627.20 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2025: Chicago experienced an average inflation rate of 2.62% per year. This rate of change indicates significant inflation. In other words, $9,500,000,000 in Chicago in the year 1920 would cost $143,940,733,627.20 in 2025 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 2.68% during this same period, inflation in Chicago was lower.
In the year 1920: Pricing changed by 19.10%, which is significantly above the average yearly change in Chicago during the 1920-2025 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 1920 (15.62%), inflation in Chicago was much higher.
Below are calculations of equivalent buying power in Chicago, over time, for $9,500,000,000 beginning in 1920. Each of the amounts below is equivalent in terms of what it could buy at the time:
| Year | USD Value | Inflation Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 | $9,500,000,000.00 | 19.10% |
| 1921 | $8,698,362,720.40 | -8.44% |
| 1922 | $8,215,785,054.58 | -5.55% |
| 1923 | $8,315,491,183.88 | 1.21% |
| 1924 | $8,479,009,235.94 | 1.97% |
| 1925 | $8,666,456,759.03 | 2.21% |
| 1926 | $8,818,010,075.57 | 1.75% |
| 1927 | $8,738,245,172.12 | -0.90% |
| 1928 | $8,467,044,500.42 | -3.10% |
| 1929 | $8,447,103,274.56 | -0.24% |
| 1930 | $8,355,373,635.60 | -1.09% |
| 1931 | $7,637,489,504.62 | -8.59% |
| 1932 | $6,740,134,340.89 | -11.75% |
| 1933 | $6,046,179,680.94 | -10.30% |
| 1934 | $6,086,062,132.66 | 0.66% |
| 1935 | $6,349,286,314.02 | 4.33% |
| 1936 | $6,476,910,159.53 | 2.01% |
| 1937 | $6,744,122,586.06 | 4.13% |
| 1938 | $6,696,263,644.00 | -0.71% |
| 1939 | $6,564,651,553.32 | -1.97% |
| 1940 | $6,600,545,759.87 | 0.55% |
| 1941 | $6,947,523,089.84 | 5.26% |
| 1942 | $7,637,489,504.62 | 9.93% |
| 1943 | $8,064,231,738.04 | 5.59% |
| 1944 | $8,187,867,338.37 | 1.53% |
| 1945 | $8,363,350,125.94 | 2.14% |
| 1946 | $9,109,151,973.13 | 8.92% |
| 1947 | $10,580,814,441.65 | 16.16% |
| 1948 | $11,502,099,076.41 | 8.71% |
| 1949 | $11,490,134,340.89 | -0.10% |
| 1950 | $11,605,793,450.88 | 1.01% |
| 1951 | $12,519,101,595.30 | 7.87% |
| 1952 | $12,790,302,267.00 | 2.17% |
| 1953 | $12,901,973,131.82 | 0.87% |
| 1954 | $13,093,408,900.08 | 1.48% |
| 1955 | $13,181,150,293.87 | 0.67% |
| 1956 | $13,364,609,571.79 | 1.39% |
| 1957 | $13,799,328,295.55 | 3.25% |
| 1958 | $14,218,094,038.62 | 3.03% |
| 1959 | $14,333,753,148.61 | 0.81% |
| 1960 | $14,533,165,407.22 | 1.39% |
| 1961 | $14,604,953,820.32 | 0.49% |
| 1962 | $14,756,507,136.86 | 1.04% |
| 1963 | $14,904,072,208.23 | 1.00% |
| 1964 | $14,963,895,885.81 | 0.40% |
| 1965 | $15,163,308,144.42 | 1.33% |
| 1966 | $15,617,968,094.04 | 3.00% |
| 1967 | $16,024,769,101.60 | 2.60% |
| 1968 | $16,702,770,780.86 | 4.23% |
| 1969 | $17,616,078,925.27 | 5.47% |
| 1970 | $18,625,104,953.82 | 5.73% |
| 1971 | $19,358,942,065.49 | 3.94% |
| 1972 | $19,909,319,899.24 | 2.84% |
| 1973 | $21,157,640,638.12 | 6.27% |
| 1974 | $23,395,046,179.68 | 10.57% |
| 1975 | $25,241,603,694.37 | 7.89% |
| 1976 | $26,450,041,981.53 | 4.79% |
| 1977 | $28,113,140,218.30 | 6.29% |
| 1978 | $30,557,934,508.82 | 8.70% |
| 1979 | $34,370,696,893.37 | 12.48% |
| 1980 | $39,328,085,642.32 | 14.42% |
| 1981 | $43,092,989,084.80 | 9.57% |
| 1982 | $46,032,325,776.66 | 6.82% |
| 1983 | $47,866,918,555.84 | 3.99% |
| 1984 | $49,673,593,618.81 | 3.77% |
| 1985 | $51,548,068,849.71 | 3.77% |
| 1986 | $52,624,895,046.18 | 2.09% |
| 1987 | $54,794,500,419.82 | 4.12% |
| 1988 | $56,936,188,077.25 | 3.91% |
| 1989 | $59,815,701,091.52 | 5.06% |
| 1990 | $63,030,226,700.25 | 5.37% |
| 1991 | $65,586,691,855.58 | 4.06% |
| 1992 | $67,509,026,028.55 | 2.93% |
| 1993 | $69,590,890,008.40 | 3.08% |
| 1994 | $71,114,399,664.15 | 2.19% |
| 1995 | $73,375,734,676.74 | 3.18% |
| 1996 | $75,337,951,301.43 | 2.67% |
| 1997 | $77,399,874,055.42 | 2.74% |
| 1998 | $78,959,277,917.72 | 2.01% |
| 1999 | $80,594,458,438.29 | 2.07% |
| 2000 | $83,182,829,555.00 | 3.21% |
| 2001 | $85,348,446,683.46 | 2.60% |
| 2002 | $86,708,438,287.15 | 1.59% |
| 2003 | $88,303,736,356.00 | 1.84% |
| 2004 | $90,277,917,716.20 | 2.24% |
| 2005 | $93,009,865,659.11 | 3.03% |
| 2006 | $94,916,246,851.39 | 2.05% |
| 2007 | $98,023,528,547.44 | 3.27% |
| 2008 | $101,717,281,696.05 | 3.77% |
| 2009 | $100,501,425,272.88 | -1.20% |
| 2010 | $101,877,529,387.07 | 1.37% |
| 2011 | $104,659,928,631.40 | 2.73% |
| 2012 | $106,249,124,685.14 | 1.52% |
| 2013 | $107,464,941,225.86 | 1.14% |
| 2014 | $109,342,248,110.83 | 1.75% |
| 2015 | $109,019,000,839.63 | -0.30% |
| 2016 | $109,741,391,687.66 | 0.66% |
| 2017 | $111,803,912,678.42 | 1.88% |
| 2018 | $113,763,696,473.55 | 1.75% |
| 2019 | $115,426,515,533.17 | 1.46% |
| 2020 | $116,714,918,136.02 | 1.12% |
| 2021 | $121,637,848,446.68 | 4.22% |
| 2022 | $130,825,329,555.00 | 7.55% |
| 2023 | $135,177,342,569.27 | 3.33% |
| 2024 | $139,855,793,450.88 | 3.46% |
| 2025 | $143,940,733,627.20 | 2.92%* |
* Not final. See inflation summary for latest details.
** Extended periods of 0% inflation usually indicate incomplete underlying data. This can manifest as a sharp increase in inflation later on.
Raw Consumer Price Index data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for Chicago, Illinois:
| Year | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 | 1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
| CPI | 10.000 | 10.017 | 10.317 | 11.758 | 13.733 | 16.667 | 19.850 | 18.175 | 17.167 | 17.375 | 17.717 | 18.108 | 18.425 | 18.258 | 17.692 | 17.650 | 17.458 | 15.958 | 14.083 | 12.633 | 12.717 | 13.267 | 13.533 | 14.092 | 13.992 | 13.717 | 13.792 | 14.517 | 15.958 | 16.850 | 17.108 | 17.475 | 19.033 | 22.108 | 24.033 | 24.008 | 24.250 | 26.158 | 26.725 | 26.958 | 27.358 | 27.542 | 27.925 | 28.833 | 29.708 | 29.950 | 30.367 | 30.517 | 30.833 | 31.142 | 31.267 | 31.683 | 32.633 | 33.483 | 34.900 | 36.808 | 38.917 | 40.450 | 41.600 | 44.208 | 48.883 | 52.742 | 55.267 | 58.742 | 63.850 | 71.817 | 82.175 | 90.042 | 96.183 | 100.017 | 103.792 | 107.708 | 109.958 | 114.492 | 118.967 | 124.983 | 131.700 | 137.042 | 141.058 | 145.408 | 148.592 | 153.317 | 157.417 | 161.725 | 164.983 | 168.400 | 173.808 | 178.333 | 181.175 | 184.508 | 188.633 | 194.342 | 198.325 | 204.818 | 212.536 | 209.995 | 212.870 | 218.684 | 222.005 | 224.545 | 228.468 | 227.792 | 229.302 | 233.611 | 237.706 | 241.181 | 243.873 | 254.159 | 273.356 | 282.450 | 292.225 | 300.760 |